Jae Hyoung Im1, JiHyeon Baek1, Areum Durey2, Hea Yoon Kwon1, Moon-Hyun Chung3, Jin-Soo Lee1. 1. 1 Department of Internal Medicine and Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Republic of Korea. 2. 2 Department of Emergency Medicine, Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Republic of Korea. 3. 3 Department of Internal Medicine, Jeju University Hospital, Jeju, Republic of Korea.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Bites with tick-borne pathogens can cause various bacterial, viral, or parasitic diseases in humans. Tick-transmitted diseases are known as contributing factors to the increasing incidence and burden of diseases. The present article investigated the epidemiology of tick-borne diseases in South Korea. METHODS: The incidence and distribution of common tick-borne diseases in Korea (Lyme disease, Q fever, and severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome [SFTS]) were investigated and analyzed, using data from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) infectious disease reporting system. A literature review was compiled on the current status of uncommon tick-borne diseases (Rickettsia, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, bartonellosis, tularemia, tick-borne encephalitis, and babesiosis). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: In South Korea, SFTS is an emerging disease, showing a rapid increase in reports since 2012, with high mortality. Likewise, reports of Lyme disease and Q fever cases have also been rapidly increasing during 2012-2017, although caution should be taken when interpreting these results, considering the likely influence of increased physician awareness and reporting of these diseases. Other tick-borne diseases reported in South Korea included spotted fever group rickettsiae, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, tularemia, Bartonella, and babesiosis. Evidences on human infection with tick-borne encephalitis virus and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever were recently unavailable, but both need constant monitoring.
BACKGROUND: Bites with tick-borne pathogens can cause various bacterial, viral, or parasitic diseases in humans. Tick-transmitted diseases are known as contributing factors to the increasing incidence and burden of diseases. The present article investigated the epidemiology of tick-borne diseases in South Korea. METHODS: The incidence and distribution of common tick-borne diseases in Korea (Lyme disease, Q fever, and severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome [SFTS]) were investigated and analyzed, using data from the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) infectious disease reporting system. A literature review was compiled on the current status of uncommon tick-borne diseases (Rickettsia, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, bartonellosis, tularemia, tick-borne encephalitis, and babesiosis). RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: In South Korea, SFTS is an emerging disease, showing a rapid increase in reports since 2012, with high mortality. Likewise, reports of Lyme disease and Q fever cases have also been rapidly increasing during 2012-2017, although caution should be taken when interpreting these results, considering the likely influence of increased physician awareness and reporting of these diseases. Other tick-borne diseases reported in South Korea included spotted fever group rickettsiae, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, tularemia, Bartonella, and babesiosis. Evidences on human infection with tick-borne encephalitis virus and Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever were recently unavailable, but both need constant monitoring.
Entities:
Keywords:
sp; Korea; Lyme disease; Q fever; severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome; tick-borne
Authors: Sang Hyun Ra; Ji Yeun Kim; Hye Hee Cha; Ji-Soo Kwon; Hyun-Jung Lee; Na Young Jeon; Min Jae Kim; Yong Pil Chong; Sang-Oh Lee; Sang-Ho Choi; Yang Soo Kim; Jun Hee Woo; Sung-Han Kim Journal: Am J Trop Med Hyg Date: 2019-12 Impact factor: 2.345